Brand Design Criqitue — Outdoor Lifestyle Brands
After brands over the years, I understand that brand design is a mixtures of personalities that come together to create a trusted community that draws customers based on their ability to maintain their image for authenticity, loyalty, and commitment to quality.
PEOPLE WANT AUTHENTICITY.
Looking through the Eddie Bauer, REI, and The North Face brands and doing a brand design critique on their ability to draw customers that live a lifestyle that is based in the outdoors.
One is branded as a clothing company, another as a camping store, and the last as an outdoor clothing company.
REI, is mainly branded as a non-profit style business. They push membership and the benefits of membership more than they push their own products. Even on the front page of the website, which can be viewed as a digital storefront, they sell how many members they have and push the benefits before introducing any sales, coupon deals, or product in any way.
This style creates REI as an outdoor community, a design for enthusiasts wanting to be more connected to the other community members, sharing information, building skills, and even co-creating the REI future by allowing members the ability to vote in new board members.
The Eddie Bauer brand is leaning more towards the quality of the branding product. It’s edge as far as being competitive above other outdoor lifestyle branding companies is that it pushes for high quality design towards a sophisticated and seasoned traveler. Someone that is shopping for an Eddie Bauer product is more than likely seeking to spend top-dollar on high quality product that reflects the lifelong journey of a traveler making a quality investment in future adventures.
The North Face brand. It is an all-around high quality product that aims towards outdoor lifestyle community members that are drawn to the sporty side of life. They seek The North Face as an extension for their athletics, outdoor sports, and outdoor recreation. It is a brand that provides key quality designs in withstanding harsh weathers and being used extensively as needed for an active, athletic lifestyle in the outdoors.
All in all, each brand company has a product, service, and experience that is uniquely tailored to that niche community it serves. Although they are all outdoor lifestyle brands, they each target specific demographics that allow them to remain as top competitors while not striving to take down one another. Simply, by shining in their own light, and staying true to their community, as a brand, they each will always maintain strong trusted companies.
All credit due to The North Face, Eddie Bauer, and REI for their hard work in designing quality outdoor lifestyle brands that we love. I use all three and commend them all.
All the best,
Serenity Tyandrah
Founder and Designer at 97th Avenue Co
